Jon Major
My research focuses on hydrological hazards associated with volcanic eruptions and landscape responses to large inputs of sediment, including from dam removals. Projects focus on: (1) identifying hydrogeomorphic processes altered by volcanic disturbance; (2) evaluating hydrogeomorphic consequences; and (3) quantifying characteristic hydrogeomorphic response times and durations.
Biography
Google scholar profile:
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=mfunvr0AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao
Education:
- University of Dayton, B.S., 1980, Geology
- The Pennsylvania State University, M.S., 1984, Geology
- University of Washington, Ph.D., 1996, Geology
Professional Experience
- Scientist-in-Charge, USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory, 2021–present
- Research hydrologist, USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory, 1997–2021
- Hydrologist, USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory, 1993–1997
- Geologist, USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory, 1984–1993
- Hydrologic field assistant, technician, USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory, 1982–1984
Professional Society Memberships:
- Geological Society of America
- American Geophysical Union
- International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of Earth's Interior (IAVCEI)
- American Avalanche Association (Member affiliate)
Recognition:
- Fellow, Geological Society of America (GSA)
- E.B. Burwell Award, GSA, 1991
- University of Dayton Alumni Special Achievement Award, 1999
- Kirk Bryan Award, GSA, 2008
- DOI Superior Service Award, 2018
Editor:
- Associate editor, Geological Society of America Bulletin, 2000-2011
- Associate editor, Journal of Geophysical Research–Earth Surface, 2010-2014
- Review editor, Frontiers in Volcanology, 2014-present
- Co-editor, Geological Society of America Special Paper 375, Natural Hazards in El Salvador
- Co-editor, Debris Flow Hazards Mitigation--Mechanics, Prediction, and Assessment: Proceedings of 4th International Conference on Debris Flow Hazards Mitigation (Millpress)
- Chief guest editor, Andean Geology issue focused on eruption of Chaitén Volcano (2013, v. 40(2))
Other professional service:
- Panel member, GSA Quaternary Geology and Geomorphology (QG&G) Division, 2002-2004
- Secretary, GSA QG&G Division, 2006-2012
- Member, International Organizing Committee, International Debris Flow Hazards Mitigation Conferences (DFHM), 2008-2015
- Chair, DFHM IOC, 2008-2012
- Co-chair of local planning committee for IAVCEI 2017 Scientific Assembly, Portland, OR.
Publications
My research publications can be parsed among various disciplinary studies. A full listing can be found on my Google Scholar profile (see link above) and under the publications tab listing below. Publication topics include:
- Landslides, debris flows, and slurry rheology
- Volcanic eruptions and volcaniclastic processes (lahars, pyroclastic flows)
- Hydrogeomorphic responses to eruptions
- Geomorphic and ecologic responses to dam removals
- Photogrammetric analyses of eruptive processes
Science and Products
Dam removal: synthesis of ecological and physical responses
Dam decommissioning is rapidly emerging as an important river restoration strategy in the U.S., with several major removals recently completed or in progress. But few studies have evaluated the far-reaching consequences of these significant environmental perturbations, especially those resulting from removals of large (>10-15 m tall) structures during the last decade. In particular,...
Lava effusion rate evolution and erupted volume during the 2018 Kīlauea lower East Rift Zone eruption
The 2018 eruption on the lower East Rift Zone of Kīlauea Volcano produced one of the largest and most destructive lava flows in Hawai’i during the past 200 years. Over the course of more than 3 months, twenty-four fissures erupted, and the rate of lava effusion varied by two orders of magnitude, with significant implications for evolving flow...
Dietterich, Hannah R.; Diefenbach, Angela K.; Soule, Adam; Zoeller, Michael H.; Patrick, Matthew R.; Major, J. J.; Lundgren, Paul Effective hydrological events in an evolving mid‐latitude mountain river system following cataclysmic disturbance—A saga of multiple influences
Cataclysmic eruption of Mount St. Helens (USA) in 1980 reset 30 km of upper North Fork Toutle River (NFTR) valley to a zero‐state fluvial condition. Consequently, a new channel system evolved. Initially, a range of streamflows eroded channels (tens of meters incision, hundreds of meters widening) and transported immense sediment loads. Now, single...
Major, Jon J.; Spicer, Kurt R.; Mosbrucker, Adam
Ten ways Mount St. Helens changed our world—The enduring legacy of the 1980 eruption
Mount St. Helens was once enjoyed for its serene beauty and was considered one of America’s most majestic volcanoes because of its perfect cone shape, similar to Japan’s beloved Mount Fuji. Nearby residents assumed that the mountain was solid and enduring. That perception changed during the early spring of 1980. Then, on May 18, 1980,...
Driedger, Carolyn L.; Major, Jon J.; Pallister, John S.; Clynne, Michael A.; Moran, Seth C.; Westby, Elizabeth G.; Ewert, John W. Mount St. Helens at 40
No abstract available.
Major, Jon J. Lessons from a post-eruption landscape
From March to May 1980, magma rose high into Mount St. Helens (MSH), swelling and—as it turned out—destabilizing its north flank. Scientists knew the volcano had been highly active at times over the past 40,000 years, but the mountain, located amid the Cascade Range in southwestern Washington, had been mostly quiet since the mid-19th century. The...
Major, Jon J.; Crisafulli, Charles M.; Swanson, Frederick J.
A multidecade analysis of fluvial geomorphic evolution of the Spirit Lake blockage, Mount St. Helens, Washington
Volcanic eruptions can affect landscapes in many ways and consequently alter erosion and the fluxes of water and sediment. Hydrologic and geomorphic responses to volcanic disturbances are varied in both space and time, and, in some instances, can persist for decades to centuries. Understanding the broad context of how landscapes respond to...
Major, Jon J.; Grant, Gordon E.; Sweeney, Kristin; Mosbrucker, Adam R.
Field trip guide to Mount St. Helens, Washington—Recent and ancient volcaniclastic processes and deposits
This field guide explores volcanic effusions, sediments, and landforms at Mount St. Helens in Washington. A detailed synopsis outlines the eruptive history of Mount St. Helens from about 300,000 years ago through 1980 and beyond.The five days in the field include about 28 stops and 12 potential stops. Exposures in valleys surrounding Mount St....
Waitt, Richard B.; Major, Jon J.; Hoblitt, Richard P.; Van Eaton, Alexa R.; Clynne, Michael A. North Fork Toutle River debris flows initiated by atmospheric rivers: November 2006
In early November, 2006, an atmospheric river brought heavy rainfall and high freezing levels to the Pacific Northwest. Without snowpack to buffer the hydrologic response, the storm caused widespread landslides and debris flows in drainages sourced from every central Cascades volcano. At Mount St. Helens, in southwestern Washington State, intense...
Mosbrucker, Adam; Spicer, Kurt R.; Major, Jon J. Multidecadal geomorphic evolution of a profoundly disturbed gravel-bed river system—a complex, nonlinear response and its impact on sediment delivery
A 2.5-km3 debris avalanche during the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens reset the fluvial landscape of upper North Fork Toutle River valley. Since then, a new drainage network has formed and evolved. Cross-section surveys repeated over nearly 40 years at 16 locations along a 20-km reach of river valley document channel evolution, geomorphic...
Major, Jon J.; Zheng, Shan; Mosbrucker, Adam; Spicer, Kurt R.; Christianson, Tami; Thorne, Colin R. Conceptualizing ecological responses to dam removal: If you remove it, what's to come?
One of the desired outcomes of dam decommissioning and removal is the recovery of aquatic and riparian ecosystems. To investigate this common objective, we synthesized information from empirical studies and ecological theory into conceptual models that depict key physical and biological links driving ecological responses to removing dams. We...
Bellmore, J. Ryan; Pess, George R.; Duda, Jeffrey J.; O'Connor, Jim E.; East, Amy E.; Foley, Melissa M.; Wilcox, Andrew C.; Major, Jon J.; Shafroth, Patrick B.; Morley, Sarah A.; Magirl, Christopher S.; Anderson, Chauncey W.; Evans, James E.; Torgersen, Christian E.; Craig, Laura S.
Lahar—River of volcanic mud and debris
Lahar, an Indonesian word for volcanic mudflow, is a mixture of water, mud, and volcanic rock flowing swiftly along a channel draining a volcano. Lahars can form during or after eruptions, or even during periods of inactivity. They are among the greatest threats volcanoes pose to people and property. Lahars can occur with little to no warning, and...
Major, Jon J.; Pierson, Thomas C.; Vallance, James W. Sediment erosion and delivery from Toutle River basin after the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens: A 30-year perspective
Exceptional sediment yields persist in Toutle River valley more than 30 years after the major 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens. Differencing of decadal-scale digital elevation models shows the elevated load comes largely from persistent lateral channel erosion across the debris-avalanche deposit. Since the mid-1980s, rates of channel-bed-...
Crisafulli, Charles; Dale, V.; Major, Jon J.; Mosbrucker, Adam; Spicer, Kurt R.
January 17, 2021 Mount Hood Earthquake Swarm
An earthquake swarm at Mount Hood is ongoing. The earthquakes are associated with regional faulting and are not a sign of changes in volcanic activity.
Volcano Watch — Legacy of the Mount St. Helens 1980 eruption still defies perfect solution
Thirty-seven years after the May 18, 1980, eruption of Mount St. Helens, Washington, scientists, engineers, land managers, and Federal, State, and County officials are still grappling with a challenge created by the eruption—how to prevent potentially massive downstream flooding by the release of water from Spirit Lake, located at the base of the volcano.